Captives of New Pompeii (7 page)

“Desk.” She tried out the new word,
frustrated by all she did not know. “What if I do not wish to be
dead?” She couldn’t force her mind beyond the question.

“I’ll change the roster, shuffle you back
into the mix.” He made it sound so simple, almost
insignificant.

He poured her a glass of wine and she
nibbled at the contents of her plate. The food had probably been
more appetizing when it was hot. Even so, she needed nourishment,
so she ignored the taste and forced herself to eat.

“The orientations really will run much
smoother if you’ll agree to help me.” He stood near the open
doorway, one shoulder resting against the wall.

“You wake my people and tell them they are
being moved to a new home because Vulcan is angry with Venus.” She
took a sip of wine and thought for a moment. “Is there no chance
Laetif’s husband will return us to Italy?”

He shook his head. “I don’t understand the
endgame, but this is an investment to him.”

Thoughts raced through her head,
possibilities and suspicions, each one less appealing than the
last. “Are we to be sold as slaves?”

“Slavery is illegal on Fedoros. From what I
understand, they have built a city very similar to Pompeii. Once
your people are settled in, life will resume much as it was before
the relocation.”

“If that is true, I find no fault in using
the story to explain the relocation. But one question remains
unanswered.”

“Why is Xyell doing this?”

She nodded. “He must gain something or he
would not have gone to all this trouble.”

“And I don’t have the answer to that
question.”

“Who would? I cannot offer my support until
I understand the—how did you put it?—endgame.”

“Laetif is our best hope of finding out
what’s really going on.” Moving behind the desk, he then sat. Then
he pushed his fingers upward across the desktop and glowing images
erupted in the space between them. Felicia gasped and leapt out of
her chair, moving behind it for shelter. “It’s all right. This is
just the graphical interface for the computer. Most of the
functions can be reached through voice command, but this provides
more information.”

“This is one of your…machines?” She pressed
her hand over her frantically beating heart and shivered.

“I’m sorry. I should have warned you. Our
machines are so much a part of everyday life that I forget about
them. I’ll try and be more sensitive to your frame of
reference.”

At time such as these she felt so foolish,
so small and insignificant. She was not stupid. She was even able
to read and write, which was highly unusual for a woman of her
station. Still, Aiden’s world made her feel—lost.

“Laetif has a do-not-disturb designation.
We’ll have to try again in the morning.”

Felicia took a deep breath and straightened
her shoulders. “And I cannot help you until I have spoken with her.
I have to understand what will become of my people before I can
participate in the transition.”

Aiden sighed, but he did not argue. “Then I
need you out of sight. I understand why you won’t help me, but I
can’t allow you to sabotage me either. You need to wait in my
cabin. I have three more groups to get through tonight.”

Laetif sat at the small, round table in her
cabin, staring at the hologram of New Pompeii. The city really was
spectacular and amazingly authentic. Would it please Felicia’s
people, or would they be so traumatized by the upheaval that they
wouldn’t appreciate the splendor?

Aiden’s flimsy story hadn’t fooled Laetif
for a minute. Felicia was clearly one of the survivors. Had she
caught his eye while he was examining her and he hadn’t been able
to cram her back into one of those infernal stasis tubes? Laetif
liked the idea. It was romantic. And romance was sadly lacking in
the world, in most worlds, for that matter.

Pushing back her chair, she stood and
wandered about the cabin. Not that there was anything she hadn’t
seen a hundred times before. This had seemed like such a good idea
in the beginning. She’d surprise Mikko by accompanying him on this
historic journey. The Thrax brothers had been happy to make the
arrangement. She was Mikko’s wife, after all. Why would they
hesitate to help her with the surprise?

Mikko had been surprised all right. He’d
been shocked and furious, and he’d had her moved into her own cabin
before the first day was through. For one foolish moment, she’d
actually thought the close quarters would force him to rediscover
their love. They’d been so combustible once, so lost in each other.
But those days were long gone. And she’d spent the past eight weeks
alone in this dreary cabin.

Felicia’s prediction had haunted her all
evening. If Laetif had an affair with the captain, it was sure to
be a short-term, shipboard sort of romance. She’d never been
interested in something so superficial. She shook her head. Felicia
was wrong. That was all there was to it. Caleb was utterly
fuckable, that was a fact, but Laetif had no interest in being
another notch on his bedpost.

The door buzzer interrupted her troubled
thoughts and she crossed to the security panel, activating visual.
Quade. She sighed. What was Mikko’s newest goon doing here? “What
do you want? I’m not feeling well.” She transmitted audio only,
enjoying the momentary advantage.

He straightened his shoulders and clasped
his hands behind his back. “I was sent to check on you. We heard
you left the mess hall abruptly and Ambassador Xyell was
concerned.”

That was three hours ago. He must not have
been too concerned. “Tell
Ambassador Xyell
that I’m
fine.”

“I can’t do that, ma’am. I was told not to
return until I’d seen you.”

Laetif triggered the door and positioned
herself in the doorway, forearm resting against the frame. “Now
you’ve seen me. Go away.”

His smile was hesitant and conflict raged in
his dark eyes. “May I come in?”

What was Mikko’s game? Why would he send one
of his thugs to spy on her? All he had to do was activate security
and… Her mind went blank, refusing to absorb the possibility.

Quade took advantage of her hesitation and
slipped past her. He was by far the best-looking of Mikko’s men.
Tall, well-built and dangerous. Just the way she liked them. He’d
swept his sleek black hair away from his face and bound it at the
nape of his neck. The wide synth-leather strip circled the thick
mass all the way down his back, keeping it contained and
controlled. Everything about him was contained and controlled. He
exuded strength with every movement, but there was a stillness
about him that terrified her.

“Is he watching us? Why are you here?” She
moved away from the door and it slid closed, locking
automatically.

“I have no specific orders. Your husband
felt you’d been alone too much during this journey. He thought you
might be bored.”

“So he sent you to what? Play chess with
me?”

“If you like.” He stalked toward her, eyes
focused on her mouth.

This was bad! Her emotions were too raw, too
volatile. She wasn’t composed enough to verbally spare with this
hunk, and she didn’t dare let him touch her. She’d go up in flames.
“I can’t do this right now. I won’t!” She darted past him and
escaped into the hall without a backward glance.

Not caring where she went, she rushed down
one corridor and then another. She was relatively safe if she
stayed on this deck. The crew wasn’t allowed up here. A large
viewport beckoned from a neat little alcove. She ducked into the
small area and leaned against the wall. Her nightgown swirled
against her legs, drawing her attention downward. This couldn’t be
happening! She wasn’t even properly dressed.

She overlapped the edges of her robe and
tightened the belt, knowing the clingy material outlined every
curve and hollow of her figure. Covering her face with her hands,
she took slow deep breaths. Her husband had sent one of his guards
to seduce her! The reality cut through her, slicing into what
remained of her heart. Mikko hadn’t touched her in months. Finding
his pleasure somewhere else was one thing, but this took his
betrayal to a whole new level.

Hurt crashed through her anger and
disbelief, spreading what was left of her composure. Her husband
didn’t love her. She’d accepted that fact long ago. But he cared so
little about her that he’d tried to pawn her off on an
employee!

A warm hand touched her shoulder and she
gasped, instinctively drawing away as she lowered her hands from
her face. Caleb Thrax stood there in all his rugged glory, concern
gleaming in his dark green eyes. “Are you all right?”

Tears rolled down her cheeks and emotion
constricted her throat. She released a pathetic sob and shook her
head. In one smooth motion, Caleb drew her to him and wrapped his
arms around her. “I don’t want this.” Her heart shuddered as she
was propelled along the inevitable path. “I didn’t want any of
this.”

She raised her face and looked into his
eyes, feeling the instant attraction, the elemental stirring she
knew would follow. Parting her lips, she offered an invitation a
man like Caleb was powerless to ignore. His face lowered toward
hers. Their lips brushed and lingered. She waited for his mouth to
move, for him to deepen the kiss and take control. Instead he
pulled back and gently pushed her away.

“You’re married, sweetheart. As tempting as
the possibilities are, that’s one place I won’t go.”

Flinching as if Caleb had slapped her,
Laetif raised her chin. “How noble of you.”

Her tone was tight and hostile, so Caleb
suppressed his sarcastic retort. “May I escort you back to your
cabin?”

“No! I can’t go back there.”

“Why not? Is something wrong with your
cabin? Is that why you’re wandering the halls in your
nightgown?”

Blushing to the roots of her silky blonde
hair, she snapped the sides of her bathrobe together over her
nightgown. The cut of the gown hadn’t been particularly revealing,
but the clingy material had given him an eyeful. Madame Xyell had
beautiful breasts, high and full with nice tight nipples.

“I didn’t realize… I’d honestly forgotten
I’d changed out of my clothes. I hadn’t expected to leave the
cabin.”

“Which brings us back to the original
question. What prompted your exploration?”

“I was… He… Oh shit, it’s all so fucked
up.”

Her profanity surprised him. She had always
seemed polished and elegant, the epitome of a refined lady. “What
is ‘so fucked up’?”

She took a deep breath and tossed her hair,
sending the wavy strands back behind her shoulders. Anger burned
through the pain in her blue eyes until she stared at him with some
unknown purpose. “My darling husband sent one of his guards to
seduce me. I was not amused.”

“Is this man still in your cabin? I can take
care of that.”

“I don’t know, and I’m not sure I care. I
couldn’t stomach that room right now anyway.”

“Where shall I escort you? I can’t have you
loitering in the corridor.”

Her fingers loosened and the robe gaped
across her breasts, revealing just a hint of cleavage. “If my
husband is determined to delegate my pleasure to someone else, I
think it should be a man of my choosing. Don’t you?”

Easily seeing her neatly laid trap, he
sidestepped it. “It doesn’t matter what I think. I have nothing to
do with it.”

“And there is nothing I can say to change
your mind?”

“I’m sorry, Laetif. I don’t bed married
women.”

Her eyes flashed frustration and pain. “Even
if her husband has pawned her off on an employee?”

“You’re angry and you’re hurt, but you’ll
feel different in a day or two. I don’t want you to do something
you’ll regret later.”

“So if I still want you in a day or two,
you’ll fuck me?”

He sighed and moved closer. She was gorgeous
and so damn vulnerable, he longed to hold her, just hold her. Which
was totally out of character for him. “It’s not a good idea.”

“I don’t care.”

She grabbed the front of his jacket and
pulled him up against her warm body. His dominant nature surged and
he pressed her against the wall, drawing her hands above her head
as he searched her eyes. “There can be no regrets. If we do this,
you go in with your eyes wide open. I’m a bastard, and I’m the
first to admit it. I’m offering you nothing but a few hours of
pleasure. Are you sure that’s what you want?”

Her lips trembled and uncertainty flared in
her gaze, but she nodded.

“Not good enough.”

Slipping her hands out from under his, she
wrapped her arms around his neck. “I want this. I know it’s just
for tonight.”

“No regrets?”

“No regrets.” She sounded certain, but
disappointment still shadowed her eyes. He should walk away. She
wasn’t jaded enough to deal with his brand of passion. As if to
prove him wrong, a wicked smile parted her lips. “Let’s do it right
here. I don’t care if we’re caught.”

He laughed. “I think you’d enjoy that, but I
wouldn’t. I’m technically your husband’s employee.” Tears flooded
her big blue eyes and he cursed his stupidity. “I’m sorry. Let’s go
to my cabin and get you something to drink.”

She followed half a step behind him, silent
and sullen. This would never do. She needed an outlet for all these
emotions or she’d be bawling the entire time he fucked her, and he
hated that.

Seconds after he closed and locked the door,
his companel lit up. It was head of security, so he accepted audio
only. “What’s going on? I really need some shut-eye.”

“Ambassador Xyell is inquiring about the
location of his wife. I was unable to locate her, so I figured I
better notify you.”

“The lady had a bit of a scare. She’s
unharmed and nearly recovered. I’ll escort her to her cabin as soon
as she feels comfortable returning.”